The Monroe

Monroe 1 scaled

Student Housing Case Study: The Monroe

Location: Bloomington, IN​

University: Indiana University

The Monroe is a 796-bed, purpose-built student housing property serving Indiana University.  Campus Advantage acquired the property in the spring of 2017 as a value-add acquisition.  The property had historically reached budgeted occupancy; however, Campus Advantage devised a strategic capital plan to achieve higher rent growth and enhance the resident experience through property renovations and elevated customer service. The plan included updating the unit interiors and amenity spaces, repositioning the property within the Bloomington market as a premier housing option, and implementing Campus Advantage’s Students First™ residence life programming. 

Campus Advantage completed the capital renovations which included a redesign of the clubhouse, business center, and fitness center, as well as unit interior upgrades including replacing dated furniture and flooring. Catalyst, Campus Advantage’s marketing partner, completed a rebrand of the property which included a new property name, logo, tagline, and a corresponding updated brand guide. Upon completion of these improvements, the property was able to increase occupancy by 9% from 2017 to 2018 and reached 100% occupancy in 2019. Most of the ROI was achieved through the occupancy increase; however, the property was also able to achieve 3% rent growth from 2018 to 2019. The Monroe is currently on track to achieve occupancy and rent growth goals for another consecutive year, and is leading the market pre-leasing by 8%.